ACCESS TO adult education
People have a right to access adult (continuing) education and job training. Below you can find data sources to help determine your access levels.
Adult education includes 4-year universities, trade schools, and technical colleges. Individuals with a high school diploma are more likely to pursue additional education, often leading to higher salaries and lower rates of unemployment. However, for many, entering the workforce after high school is the only option, for a variety of reasons. Individuals who pursue school later in life can face increased barriers.
Educational attainment is the highest level of education completed by an individual.
Cost is one of the largest barriers preventing individuals from receiving a high-quality adult education or a college degree
Many people take out student loans in order to continue their education.
Student loan debt can make it difficult to accumulate savings, invest in a home, or pay for necessities. It may also lower credit scores.
Debt often decreases an individual’s economic mobility (the ability to make financial choices freely), contributing to income disparities.
national data
U.S. Census Bureau collects the following information on adult educational attainment by:
Type (less than high school, high school, associate’s degree)
Population age (18-24, 25+, 65+)
Demographics
Poverty rate
Median financial earnings
U.S. Census Instructions: Open Site > Click Geos in the top tool bar > Scroll to select County > Select your state > Select your county > X out of Geos > Minimize the left-hand side bar Results by clicking the double arrow icon > This allows you to see your county results.
You can select multiple counties at once and they will be displayed side by side. Some states have data available for County Subdivisions. You can also view any data at a larger scope, through Congressional District or Metropolitan/Micropolitan Statistical Area.
To export data: choose More Tools on the top tool bar, right-hand side and download your data in an Excel, CSV, or ZIP format.
USDA Educational Attainment Map provides county-level data on adult educational attainment levels, categorized by the following:
Completion of college
Completion of some college
Completion of high school only
No completion high school
USDA Educational Attainment Map Instructions: Open Map > Choose your state from the drop-down option > Choose highest level of educational attainment > County tables with percentages will be displayed. To export data, click the blue save icon located at the top under your chosen state.
U.S. DOE National Reporting System for Adult Education provides state-level data on the following:
Number of participants in career & training services (demographics, employment rates, median earnings, measurable skills gained)
Employment barriers (displaced from home, English as a second language, cultural barriers, literacy, ex-offenders, disabilities, migrant workers)
Outcome measures (secondary school diploma, employment, median earnings post-school, increased involvement in children’s education)
State funding sources (local education agencies, public/private nonprofits)
Number of educational personnel (staff, teachers, volunteers)
DOE National Reporting System Instructions: Open Site > Click on your state from the map or choose from State List menu and year from Program Year List > This will bring you to the dashboard of reports. You can view or export a spreadsheet of data (in Excel).
STUDENT LOANS & COLLEGE DEBT
“The burden of student loan debt is at a crisis level in the US. And students of color are bearing the brunt of this crushing weight, which impacts countless aspects of their lives — and exacerbates an already staggering racial wealth gap that was further widened by COVID-19. The racial wealth gap describes the significant difference in wealth held by white people and people of color in the U.S. This gap is staggering… black households have about 7 cents on the dollar compared to white households.”
Debt in America Interactive Map
County-level data
Visualization of all debt (medical, student, auto, retail)
Share of student loan holders
Compare white communities with communities of color